THUGS attacked a milkman with a metal bar, smashing his float and destroying more than 1000 milk bottles.

A gang of about 20 youths approached the 37-year-old at 4.30am on Saturday as he delivered milk in Burwardsley Road, Tattenhall.

Six of them threw a concrete block through the windscreen as the Briscoe's Dairy employee, who does not want to be named, tried to drive away.

Speaking from his home in Saltney, the victim said there was no provocation.

'They jumped on the back of the float and started pulling crates over. I jumped out of the cabin and that was when they hit me across the back with a metal bar.

'I had to have stitches in my leg and now can't use my left hand as the finger tendons have ruptured. I will have to have six weeks of physiotherapy before I can work again and I can't drive, play golf or do anything.'

As the wounded milkman dialled 999, the youths smashed the float's complete stock then attempted to drive the vehicle across a school field where it became stuck. Police have impounded the float for forensic tests.

The victim, married with a two-year-old daughter, said: 'I used to be a delivery driver in the West Midlands where we had thousands of pounds worth of goods in our van and I never had any problems.

'In six weeks' time when I am back at work I am going to be thinking in my head is it going to happen again?'

Graham Briscoe, manager of Briscoe's Dairy in Tarvin, said he and his nine other milkmen had been stunned by the attack, but will not stop delivering.

'We are just a small family business trying to make a living and in the service industry we have to provide that service to our customers or they will go elsewhere. We have been open since the 1950s and we have had nothing like this before.

'That lad was doing his job like the rest of us and these kids have come along and put him out of action for six weeks.'

'If this should happen again we can't ask another person to go out there on his own. It is going to involve somebody accompanying them as security.'

Mr Briscoe claimed police had not responded to reports of youths causing havoc hours before the assault.

'The school caretaker had already reported them to the police on Saturday but they didn't attend,' he said.

'Our chap has then come along and been their next victim. A piece of concrete and an iron bar were used - you could have been talking about a murder.'

Jon Ratcliffe of Cheshire Police said: 'Police received reports of a car being driven up Chester Road at approximately 3.44am .

'Police did attend at 5.36am which was as soon as a patrol was available after it dealt with the assault incident and criminal damage was found to a window and planters at a school on Chester Road.

'In the early hours of a Saturday the number of calls for assistance is extremely high. We have to prioritise .

'At this particular time officers in Chester were dealing with a number of incidents including a missing person, a domestic incident, and several incidents in Chester city centre.'

Anyone with information about the assault is asked to contact Chester police on 01244 350222